Baseball – Offense Pours It in Suspended Game as Jersey Shore Reaches Carpenter Cup Semifinal

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A burst of rain Friday paused the Jersey Shore Carpenter Cup Team's pursuit of a berth in the Carpenter Cup semifinals, but when play resumed Saturday afternoon against Southeastern Pennsylvania (SEPA), the floodgates opened.

Thanks to a pair of Middletown North standouts, Jersey Shore scored four runs with two out in the top of the sixth inning Saturday and scored seven unanswered runs in total to close out a 9-2 win over SEPA in the Carpenter Cup quarterfinals.

With Saturday's victory, Jersey Shore advances to the Carpenter Cup semifinals on June 26 at Citizens Bank Ballpark in Philadelphia.

The game resumed Saturday with runners on second and third with two out for the Shore in the top of the sixth inning and Howell junior Braden Walsh led off the restart by wearing a hit-by-pitch to load the bases.

Middletown North junior Dylan Briggs then delivered a tie-breaking two-run single on a line drive into centerfield, scoring Middletown South's Ben Schild from third and Manalapan's Cristian Bernardini from second.

Briggs's Middletown North teammate, senior Ryan Frontera, then ripped a doubled into leftfield to chase home two more runs and was cut down attempting to advance to third base, ending the rally.

Walsh tacked on another run for the Shore with an RBI double in the top of the eighth inning to score Wall senior Gabe Cavazzoni -- who was also hit by a pitch. Toms River East sophomore Matt Ferrara -- who followed the leadoff hit-by-pitch with a walk -- advanced to third on Walsh's double and scored on an error with one out.

In the top of the ninth, Schild singled, followed by a double by Cavazzoni and Schild scored the ninth Jersey Shore run when Briggs was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.

Red Bank left-hander Nate Ruth was the pitching star for Jersey Shore, firing three scoreless, hitless innings after the resumption that included five strikeouts and just one walk. Matawan junior right-hander Brandon Falco then finished off the victory with a scoreless ninth inning, striking out two and walking one.

Prior to the suspension of the game in the top of the sixth inning on Friday, Jersey Shore took two different one-run leads that SEPA erased. Frank Scrivanic hit a sacrifice fly in the top of the first inning for a 1-0 lead and Jackson Memorial third baseman Charlie Meglio plated Reece Moroney from third base when his ground ball was mishandled for a run-scoring error with one out.

Red Bank Catholic right-hander Steve Svenson and Rumson-Fair Haven right-hander John Goodes each surrendered a run prior to he stoppage, with Svenson completing the first three innings and Goodes throwing two frames prior to the rain and lightning arriving on Friday.

The Jersey Shore will take on Olympic-Colonial in the first semifinal on June 26, with first pitch scheduled for 9 a.m. at the home of the defending National League champions in South Philly. Jersey Shore and Olympic-Colonial are tied for the most Carpenter Cup championships (five) and the winner will go for a record sixth title in the championship game on June 27 at 9:30 a.m.

Box Score

Jersey Shore 9, SEPA 2

Pitching

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